Duncan From #QandA Killed It On ABC Radio This Morning, Is The Internet’s Newest Hero
"People who make a lot of money, they don't see what's below them."
As happens sometimes, last night’s episode of Q&A was dominated by someone in the audience. Duncan Storrar, a father of two and full-time student, described to the panel how he has spent much of his working life receiving the minimum wage, and his pointed questions over the government’s focus on helping the wealthy instead of the vulnerable have received national attention.
Ever since last night, the hashtag #IStandWithDuncan has been trending nationwide, with people expressing solidarity for Storrar’s situation and calling for a renewed election focus on people struggling to get by.
It’s not hard. Millionaires and multinational corporations avoid their tax obligations. Stop them. #qanda #istandwithduncan
— Sally McManus (@sallymcmanus) May 9, 2016
#IstandwithDuncan because he so eloquently described his life. Works hard, loves his family and it’s not enough. — Aussie Mauzza (@AussieMauzza) May 10, 2016
The Prime Minister through to Captains of Industry have nothing on you Duncan, today you are the tallest man in Australia #IStandWithDuncan
— Neale Stratford (@Strattyg) May 9, 2016
#istandwithduncan well done on blowing open the 2016 election. #Equitymatters! if you are better off, we are all better off. @croakeyblog — Kerry Arabena (@ArabenaKerry) May 9, 2016
#qanda #istandwithduncan we need more voices like Duncan. Hope he knows most of us hate this unfairness. We stand with him and his girls.
— Kavita Jade (@kavita_jade) May 9, 2016
But all the talk around Storrar has been trumped by the man himself, who went on 702 ABC Sydney this morning. Asked by host Wendy Harmer why he felt the need to raise the issues he did last night, Storrar offered the following:
“Because they’re important questions. One of the things I have with people who make a lot of money, they don’t see what’s below them. They have no idea about the bloke who works for the subcontractor, that works for Toll, that works below wage, that actually delivers their parcels every day…He knows he’s working below wage, but he can’t go look for another job, so he’s trapped working for below wage, and he can’t stop doing that work that he’s doing because he’ll lose income for 12 weeks. So then you’re just trapped.
“That’s life on a low income. That’s what it’s like….That’s how people like Toll can deliver parcels across the country in 24 hours. It all works on the subcontractors. People who work for the subcontractors work for below-award wages. I’m that person.”
With another seven weeks until the July 2 election, this probably isn’t the last we’ve heard from Storrar, or the issues he raised to such effect last night. In case all this talk of severe economic inequality has sparked a desire to do some democracy this election, you should know that the electoral rolls close on May 23, so if you’re not enrolled to vote, go do that now.